Disclaimer: Harry Potter is not mine.

Chapter 2 – School Shopping

The next morning, the Jones family gathered in the living room. Sue and Dan had their suitcases by their sides, and Lucy stood behind them next to a large trunk that had inside it all her things that she would be taking to school.

Dan picked up a small vase from beside the fireplace and held it out to Sue. She reached in, and when she pulled her arm back out, there was a fistful of some powdery substance in her hand: Floo Powder. Lucy was used to using Floo Powder to travel since she was too young to Apparate.

"Remember, we're going to the Congress," Sue reminded Lucy. "I'll go first, and Dad will follow you." She smiled encouragingly, and Lucy returned it.

Sue turned back to the fireplace and threw the Floo Powder into it. The flames turned bright green. Then, holding her suitcase close to her, Sue stepped right into the flames and called out, "Magical Congress of the USA!" With a whoosh, she was gone.

"Your turn, princess," Dan said.

He offered Lucy the vase, and Lucy dipped her hand inside, reaching deeper until she felt the sandy powder on her fingers. She grabbed a handful and carefully withdrew her hand. Then she tossed her powder into the fireplace, and the flames turned green once again. She stepped into the fire, and Dan set up her trunk next to her.

Lucy grasped it firmly and gave her father a small smile. "Magical Congress of the USA!" she called.

She kept one hand tightly on her trunk as she heard a roar. The green flames surrounded her as she seemed to fly through the fireplace. She kept her mouth tightly shut for fear of swallowing any ash.

Then, almost as suddenly as they had started, the flames slowed down, and she could almost make out rooms whipping past her vision. Finally, the roaring stopped, and Lucy found herself flopping face first onto a stone floor. She heard her trunk fall forward with a loud thunk.

"Lucy!" a voice exclaimed—Sue. "Are you all right, sweetie?"

Lucy pushed herself onto her knees, looking up for her mother. When she spotted her, Lucy smiled and nodded. "I'm fine, Mom," she replied.

"Come on," Sue said, offering Lucy her hand. "Let's get you up." She pulled Lucy to her feet and brushed the ash from her shirt.

Lucy looked around the chamber that she and Sue were currently standing in. There were other witches and wizards coming and going via the multiple fireplaces in the room.

A moment later, Dan appeared out of the flames. "Come along this way," he said, pulling his wand out and levitating Lucy's trunk in front of him.

He led the way out of the fireplace room and into the main atrium. Sue and Lucy hurried after him. Dan, who worked at the Congress, knew exactly where he was going. They took an elevator up a few floors, where the Floo Network Department was located. Dan exchanged greetings with some of the workers they passed, and soon they were entering the offices that housed the Floo Network Department.

"Good morning," Dan said to the wizard at the front desk. "We're here to use the International Floo."

"Do you have your paperwork?" the wizard asked, almost sounding bored.

Dan reached into his robe pocket and pulled out a few sheets of paper. He passed them across the desk to the wizard, who examined them for a moment.

"Very well," the wizard said. He pulled out a large rubber stamp and smacked the papers with it. Then he handed the paperwork back, saying, "Through there, second door on the right." He pointed to a set of double doors.

Dan nodded his thanks, and the Joneses continued on.

The room they entered was fairly small. Inside was only a large fireplace against the opposite wall, and there was a witch standing guard.

"Morning," she said brightly to the family. "Where are we headed today?"

"We're going over to Britain," Dan replied, holding out their paperwork again.

The witched looked at it briefly before giving it back. "Well, enjoy your stay," she said, holding out a jar that was full of Floo Powder.

"Sue," Dan said, gesturing to his wife to go first.

Sue took a fistful of the powder and threw it into the fireplace. Then she stepped into the flames. "British Ministry of Magic!" she announced, and she disappeared.

"Did you get that?" Dan asked Lucy, who nodded.

She stepped up to the fireplace, threw some powder in, and stood in the fire. Dan stood up her trunk again, and she grabbed it tightly.

"British Ministry of Magic!" she said. She felt herself whirling away.

In a shorter amount of time than she'd expected, Lucy slowed down and fell out of the next fireplace. She looked around immediately for Sue and found her standing nearby. There was another witch next to her. Sue offered Lucy her hand and pulled her daughter to her feet.

A few moments later, Dan appeared, as well.

"Hello," the witch said warmly. "Welcome to the British Ministry of Magic. May I see your paperwork?" Dan once again handed his papers over, and the witch quickly glanced through them. "Looks like everything is in order," she said, taking one of the pages and putting in on the desk next to her. She handed the other sheets back and asked, "How may I direct you today?"

"We are looking to use a normal Floo to reach our next destination," Dan replied.

The witch nodded. "I will call for someone to take you to the Atrium," she said. "You may wait outside. Have a nice day!"

Lucy followed her parents out of the room and found herself in an office.

After a moment, a young-looking wizard hurried up to them. "Good afternoon," he said. "I'm supposed to lead you to the Atrium. Are you ready?"

"Yes," Dan replied.

Lucy, Dan, and Sue followed the wizard through the office and out into an elevator bay. After waiting for a minute, they got into an elevator and ascended to the Atrium level.

"Whoa," Lucy said as they walked through the Atrium.

In the middle of the room, there was a giant fountain. In the center was a wizard with his wand held up in the air, and a stream of water jetted from the end of it. Gathered around him was a witch—also with water coming from her wand; a centaur—with water spraying out of the end of his bow and arrow; a goblin—who had water coming from the point of his hat; and a house-elf—with water coming out of the tips of its ears.

"That is our Fountain of Magical Brethren," the wizard leading them explained. "It depicts the peace and harmony between both wizard-kind and magical creatures."

They walked a little further, entering a wide corridor where there were fireplaces along the walls on either side. The wizard guided them to the left-hand side of the hall, where there was a short line of witches and wizards waiting to depart.

"Here you are," the wizard said. "Any of these fireplaces will take you out of the Ministry. Good afternoon." Then, after giving them a short bow, the wizard retreated.

Lucy, Dan, and Sue didn't have to wait long until a fireplace became available. The three of them went up to it, noticing that there were pots of Floo Powder hanging on the wall next to the fireplaces.

"Sue again," Dan said with a smile.

Sue nodded and turned to Lucy. "We're going to a place called The Burrow," she informed her daughter. Then she went back to the fireplace and was soon disappearing in the flames.

"The Burrow?" Lucy repeated, looking to Dan for confirmation.

"That's right," he said. "Go ahead, princess."

Lucy stepped forward and took some Floor Powder. She was glad that this would be the last trip; she was getting a little tired of using the Floo Network. Throwing the powder in, she stepped into the flames and took hold of her trunk once again. "The Burrow!" she announced, and then she was off.

~LJ:TH~

Shortly after, Lucy was deposited onto the rug-covered floor of a sitting room. She looked up, wondering to herself if she would ever stop falling out fireplaces while traveling by Floo Powder, and took Sue's offered hand to help her off the floor.

When Lucy was on her feet, she looked around the room to see a middle-aged woman—maybe a few years older than Sue—surrounded by five children. There were four boys and one girl. They all had the same flaming red hair and were looking at Lucy with interested expressions.

Before any introductions could be made, Dan came out of the fireplace.

"Hello again," he said brightly to Sue and Lucy. He turned to the other woman and offered his hand in greeting. "Nice to meet you. I'm Dan Jones, and this is my wife Sue and our daughter Lucy."

"It is lovely to meet you," the woman replied warmly, accepting Dan's hand. She and Sue also shook hands, and then the woman turned to Lucy.

"It is so good to meet you at last, Lucy," she continued, shaking hands with Lucy. "You are in good hands; count on that. When Dumbledore contacted Arthur—my husband—about a young girl needing a family to stay with, we of course took the opportunity at once!"

She beckoned her children forward and went on, "Anyway, my name is Molly Weasley, and these are five of my children. The oldest one is Percy—"

Percy waved from the back.

"—and the twins are Fred and George. You'll learn to figure out who is who eventually," Mrs. Weasley added with a wink. "They tease me when I mix them up.

"And here's my youngest son Ron." Mrs. Weasley grabbed Ron's arm and dragged him forward. "He's the same age as you are, Lucy. And this is my daughter Ginny. My sons Bill and Charlie are off on their own now, bless them, but maybe you'll get a chance to meet Bill sometime before you have to leave for Hogwarts."

"Why not Charlie?" Lucy asked curiously.

"Oh, well, he's in Romania studying dragons," Mrs. Weasley replied. "He doesn't take vacation all that often. Maybe he'll surprise us in August for Ginny's and Percy's birthdays," she added as an afterthought. "Anyways, come in! Come in! Dan and Sue, Fred and George will show you to your bedroom, and Lucy, you'll be sharing with Ginny. We're a little cramped for space, but you know what they say: the more, the merrier!"

Her kids all rolled their eyes before Fred and George grabbed Dan's and Sue's bags and showed them upstairs. Percy excused himself, his chest thrust out slightly to show off the gleaming badge on his shirt. Lucy looked at it quizzically.

"Percy's just been made a prefect at Hogwarts," Mrs. Weasley explained happily, noticing where Lucy was looking. "He's the third one in the family, right after Bill and Charlie." She beamed after her son before hurrying from the room.

"Sorry about her," Ron said after she was gone. "She's just really proud of them, is all. Puts a lot of pressure on us, though. Right, Ginny?"

Ginny nodded and shrugged at the same time. "We ought to warn you, though," she said to Lucy in a serious tone. "If you get Sorted into Slytherin, Mum and Dad will kick you out of the house."

Lucy's eyes widened. "What? What's Slytherin?" she asked worriedly.

Ginny chuckled and said, "I'm only joking."

Ron shot her a glare. "I forgot that you probably don't know much about Hogwarts," he started, turning back to Lucy. "There are four houses: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Everyone in our family has been sorted into Gryffindor… which means I probably will, too. Slytherin is where all the evil witches and wizards come from. I'm not exactly sure why, but Fred and George tell stories. If you're sorted into Slytherin, though, Mum and Dad won't kick you out. They wouldn't do that."

Lucy nodded, relieved. She sort of hoped, however, that she wouldn't be put into Slytherin.

"Sorry, couldn't help but tease you a bit," Ginny said. "I just wish I could go, but I'm not old enough yet. Oh, by the way, I should show you to my room, so you can put your trunk there." She then skipped away toward the stairs.

Ron shrugged, and he helped Lucy carry her trunk up to Ginny's room. When they reached the bedroom, Lucy and Ron kicked the trunk to the end of the cot that had been set up. Then Lucy took a look around the room.

"Wow, you have a beautiful view from up here," she commented, gazing out the window.

Ginny was sitting on her bed, hugging her knees to her chest. She smiled. "Yeah, Fred and George used to complain that I have the best room in the house," she replied.

"You lot! Come on! We're going to go to Diagon Alley for school shopping!" Mrs. Weasley called up the stairs.

Lucy squealed with happiness, and Ron and Ginny laughed at her response. The three of them hurried back downstairs and into the Weasleys' sitting room.

~LJ:TH~

Once all six children were gathered, Mrs. Weasley retrieved a flower pot from the mantel.

"We're going to Diagon Alley in London," she explained to Lucy and her parents. Then, turning to her children, she asked, "Do you boys all have your Hogwarts lists?"

The boys all murmured their confirmation.

Mrs. Weasley nodded her approval before offering the flower pot to Dan. "Guests first!" she said.

One by one, they all used the Floo Network to travel to Diagon Alley. Mrs. Weasley sent Lucy through the fire after the twins. When Lucy reached her destination, one of the twins held out his hand to help her up off the floor.

"Thanks," Lucy said after he had hauled her to her feet. "You're… George, right?"

The twin smiled. "Yeah," he answered. "I'm impressed that you can tell us apart already. Unless you were just guessing. In that case, you're a good guesser."

"I paid attention to what you and your brother were wearing when your mother introduced you," Lucy replied with a smirk.

George looked down at his shirt. "I didn't even think of that," he said. He narrowed his eyes at Lucy. "Challenge accepted, new girl." He winked at her, and Lucy giggled.

"George, behave yourself," Mrs. Weasley said, having just appeared in the fireplace. "Welcome to the Leaky Cauldron," she continued, looking between Dan, Sue, and Lucy. "This is the pub that guards the entrance to Diagon Alley. Come along."

Taking the lead, Mrs. Weasley guided her children and the Joneses through the pub and out the back door. Lucy was confused when they left the pub and were standing on a slab of concrete facing a brick wall.

However, Mrs. Weasley pulled out her wand and used it to touch a specific brick. The bricks in the wall began to shift, and soon an archway appeared. Lucy could see that on the other side of the wall, there was a road. Mrs. Weasley went through the arch first, followed by the others.

"Wow," Lucy breathed, looking around with wide eyes.

They were on a long road that was lined with buildings. Lucy was impressed that all of this was hidden right in the middle of London. Witches and wizards walked along, chatting and carrying large shopping bags.

"There's actually something else your mother and I have to tell you, Lucy," Dan said, drawing Lucy's attention back to her parents. Dan reached into his robe pocket and pulled out a silver key. He held it out to his daughter, saying, "This is the key to your very own vault at Gringotts Bank. Your birth parents left it to you. Dumbledore sent it on when we let Hogwarts know that you would be attending."

"My own vault?" Lucy repeated, taking the key from him. "Does that mean there's something in it?"

"We won't know until we check," Sue said. She turned to Mrs. Weasley and asked, "Where is Gringotts, anyway?"

Mrs. Weasley pointed down the street to the large, glittering white building at the end of the road. "I have to stop in there, as well," she said. "We can all go together."

They reached the bank, and a pair of goblins bowed the group into the building. Inside were more goblins sitting behind two long tables that ran the length of the room. Mrs. Weasley led the group up to an available goblin.

"Hello," she said. "We need to go down to a couple of vaults."

"May I see the keys of the vaults you wish to visit?" the goblin asked.

Mrs. Weasley searched her bag for a moment before pulling out a key and handing it over to the goblin. "Lucy, can you show the goblin your key, as well?" she requested kindly.

Lucy immediately gave her new key to the goblin.

He examined both keys for a moment before nodding. "Very well," he said. "Everything seems to be in order. I'll call for someone to take you down."

As he was finding a goblin to take them down to their vaults, Mrs. Weasley turned to her children. "I don't think you all need to come down with us," she said.

"I can stay with the kids, Molly," Dan volunteered. "We'll wait for you outside, if that's all right."

"Oh, thank you, Dan," Mrs. Weasley said. "Then Sue, Lucy, and I will be back in a little while." She glanced over at her children and added severely, "Behave yourselves. No wandering off."

"Yes, Mum," the Weasleys all chorused. They turned and exited the bank with Dan just as another goblin had appeared.

"I'm to take you down to your vaults," the goblin reported.

He led the way through a door off the main lobby. They walked down a dark tunnel until they came to a track with a little cart waiting for them. Mrs. Weasley climbed into the cart first, and Sue and Lucy followed. When they were all settled, the cart shot off into the darkness.

They were only moving for a few minutes before the cart screeched to a halt. They had reached a door in the wall, and on the door was a number. The goblin guiding them got out of the cart, and Mrs. Weasley got out, as well. Sue and Lucy waited in the cart until Mrs. Weasley had retrieved some of the gold out of the vault.

Once again, they hurtled along at a high speed. Lucy thought the ride was exhilarating, yet she gripped tightly onto the side of the cart. Soon, they were stopping, this time at a different vault.

"This is yours, sweetie," Sue said as the goblin got out.

Lucy scrambled out of the cart, as well, and followed the goblin to the vault door. He inserted the key and then pulled the door open.

Lucy's mouth fell open. Inside were mounds of Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts. There was more money there than she had ever seen before. "This is all mine?" she asked, unsure of what to think.

Sue reached into her purse and pulled out another bag. "This is all yours," she confirmed. "This belongs to you, as well." She opened the bag and showed Lucy yet more money inside of it. "Your father and I have been saving a little money for you ever since you came into our lives. We thought it would make more sense if you put it into your Gringotts vault with the rest of it."

"Thank you, Mom," Lucy said, feeling a little overwhelmed. She then pulled her own coin purse out of her bag and filled it up with a bunch of the money.

When she was finished, the goblin shut the door again and handed her the key. Then they all got back into the cart and shot off.

~LJ:TH~

Soon, Lucy, Sue, and Mrs. Weasley were rejoining the other Weasley children and Dan outside of Gringotts. Then they began to shop for their school supplies. Mrs. Weasley opted to go into many of the second-hand shops for her children, which included a second-hand robes shop and a second-hand bookstore.

Finally, after a couple of hours of shopping for everything else, it was time for Lucy to get her wand.

"Well, you'll want to go to Ollivander's to get your wand, dear," Mrs. Weasley said kindly, noticing how excited Lucy was. "Come along this way. Ollivander's is just down the road."

The wand shop was rather small and shabby-looking. The Weasleys and Dan decided to wait outside while Sue accompanied Lucy inside.

It was dark and seemingly empty when they entered. Lucy looked around at the piles of wands, some of which reached as high as the ceiling.

"Good afternoon," a soft voice greeted. An old wizard had appeared from the back of the shop. He gazed at Lucy with an intense stare. "How may I assist you?"

"My daughter is looking to buy her first wand," Sue said, putting a comforting hand on Lucy's shoulder.

The man raised an eyebrow, looking surprised. "I don't get very many Americans in my shop," he explained simply. After a moment, he added, "My apologies; I've forgotten to introduce myself. I am Ollivander, and welcome to my wand shop. What is your name, young lady?"

"Lucy," Lucy replied. "Lucy Jones."

Ollivander nodded. "Very well, Miss Jones," he said. "If you would kindly hold out your wand arm, we can begin."

Lucy raised her right arm, and Ollivander pulled a tape measure out of his robe pocket. Then, with a wave of his wand, the tape measure began to measure Lucy's arm. Meanwhile, Ollivander went to a pile of wand boxes and started to shuffle through them.

A few minutes later, Ollivander turned back to Lucy and pointed his wand at the tape measure, which fell to the floor. He had a box in his hand, and he carefully picked up the wand from inside of it. Handing it over, he said, "Here you are, Miss Jones. Ash, twelve inches, with a unicorn tail hair."

Lucy took it from him.

"Go ahead and wave it," Ollivander added.

Lucy did as she was told, but the wandmaker snatched it out of her hand.

"No, no," he mumbled, looking for another wand. He took another box down and pulled out the wand, saying, "Blackthorn, nine-and-three-quarters inches, with a phoenix feather."

Lucy again took the wand and waved it.

Ollivander grabbed this one back, too. "Not to worry, dear, not to worry," he said. "The wand chooses the wizard—or, in your case, witch."

Lucy tried another five wands without any luck. Ollivander didn't look frustrated, but Lucy was starting to feel disheartened.

"Here we are," Ollivander said, plucking another box from a pile. He removed the wand and handed it to Lucy as he said, "Rowan, twelve-and-a-quarter inches, with a unicorn tail hair. Good for Charms work."

Lucy took the wand, and immediately a warm feeling shot up her arm. She waved it, and a jet of multicolored sparks came from the end.

"Well done, Miss Jones! Well done!" Ollivander said as Sue clapped for her daughter. He took the wand from Lucy and put it back in its box. "Yes, I'm sure you will perform excellent magic with this wand. Although I must admit, I am rather curious as to why you have come all the way from America to buy a wand here."

"My husband and I adopted Lucy when she was very young," Sue answered. "She was born here in England, and so her name was down for Hogwarts. She's starting school there in September."

"In that case, I wish you good luck, Miss Jones," Ollivander said with a smile as he handed over the box with Lucy's new wand in it. "That will be seven Galleons, please."

Lucy pulled out the coins and gave them to him. "Thank you," she added, and Ollivander bowed them from his shop.

"Did you find a winner, princess?" Dan asked as Lucy and Sue rejoined him and the Weasleys.

"Yes," Lucy replied with a grin. "It's rowan with a unicorn tail hair—twelve-and-a-quarter inches."

There were a few nods of approval among the group.

"So, is that all we needed?" Mrs. Weasley asked, looking between Dan and Sue.

"There is one more thing," Sue said. "We were thinking that Lucy might like to have a pet to take with her to school."

Lucy's mouth dropped open in excitement as she turned quickly to look at her mother. "Do you really mean it?" she asked.

"Well, your school list does say you can take an animal with you," Sue replied. "So how about it? Shall we stop at a pet store before we head back to the Weasleys'?"

"Yes!" Lucy exclaimed. "Yes, please!"

Mrs. Weasley led the way up the alley again, stopping outside of the pet store. Dan, Sue, and Lucy went into the shop while the Weasleys waited for them. They spent about fifteen minutes in the shop before they left again. Lucy was carrying a cat carrier with her brand new black cat curled up inside.

"I think that's everything," Dan announced.

Sue nodded in agreement.

"Very well," Mrs. Weasley said. "Come along, everyone."

~LJ:TH~

When Lucy arrived back at the Burrow, she gathered up all her new things—including her new cat—and took them directly upstairs. She packed all her school things inside of her trunk, placing the box that held her wand on top.

Then she turned to the cat carrier, where she could hear a soft meowing. Lucy sat on the cot that had been made up for her and opened the carrier. The cat cautiously stuck her head out. Lucy held her hand out, and the cat sniffed at it.

"Hello, pretty girl," Lucy said in a low voice.

The cat took a few tentative steps out of the carrier, sniffing at the blanket on the cot.

"I suppose we ought to name you something," Lucy went on. "How about… Whiskers?" The cat continued to sniff around at Lucy, who shook her head. "Nah, you don't seem like a Whiskers," she said. "What about Mittens?"

The cat sat down in front of Lucy and looked up at her. Lucy frowned in thought before slowly reaching out and stroking the cat's head. The cat leaned into her hand.

"Mittens isn't quite right, either," Lucy said. "Hmm.… Wait! I've got the perfect name for you. Evie!"

The cat purred and crawled into Lucy's lap. She laid down, continuing to purr, as Lucy scratched her ears.

"I hope you like living with me, Evie," Lucy said, "and don't worry—the Weasleys are super nice. Then in September, we'll be going to Hogwarts."

Evie rolled onto her back, looking up at Lucy.

There was a knock on the bedroom door, and Lucy called, "Come in!"

Sue entered the room, beaming at her daughter. "Bonding already?" Sue asked. "What did you decide to name her?"

"Evie," Lucy replied. "She seems to like it."

"That's wonderful," Sue said. "It's time to wash up and come down to dinner, okay?"

"Okay, Mom, I'll be right down," Lucy said.

Sue left the room, and Lucy picked up Evie, who squirmed a bit before scrambling up onto Lucy's shoulders.

Lucy giggled. "Come on, Evie," she said. "Time for dinner!"

Evie meowed, and Lucy left the room, excited to spend her first night with the Weasleys.

~LJ:TH~

A/N: 1. The idea that there are multiple Floo Networks that are managed by the individual governing bodies is mentioned in Fantastic Beasts (according to the Harry Potter Wiki, at least). But I wanted a way for Lucy to get to Britain without having to Apparate, use a Portkey, or use some sort of Muggle/No-Maj transportation; so I came up with the idea that the governing bodies had a kind of international set up that would be very regulated.

2. I'm pretty sure that the American Wizarding community has its own money, but I've decided that Wizarding money is universal in this story. It just made things easier. Also, Gringotts is the main bank for the Wizarding world, as well, which is why Dan and Sue know what it is.

3. To figure out Lucy's wand, I went onto Pottermore (probably on the original site, when it still had all the interactive stuff on it) and made a new account just to take the wand finding quiz again. I answered the questions the way that she would, and ta-da.

4. Originally, Lucy's cat was a tuxedo kitty named Boots. I've changed her to a black cat, and therefore decided to change her name, as well.